Tim Simpson, 57, holds the ball signed by Justin Verlander he received from Tigers general manager Dave Dombrowski.

Written by

Tim Simpson
Detroit Free Press Special Writer

Editor's note: Tim Simpson is battling cancer and has been given about a year to live by his doctors. After delivering the Free Press as a kid in Windsor, Ontario, Simpson spent 40 years in the newspaper business, beginning at the Windsor Star and ending when he took a buyout from the Montreal Gazette last year. He is a lifelong Tigers fan and recently received a gift from general manager Dave Dombrowski -- a baseball autographed by pitcher Justin Verlander. Below is a letter of thanks Simpson wrote to Dombrowski, originally published by the Gazette: